Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
China, India to disengage forces
Countries’ military chiefs meet for first time since clash
BEIJING — Chinese and Indian military commanders have agreed to disengage their forces in a disputed area of the Himalayas after a clash that left at least 20 soldiers dead, both countries said Tuesday.
The commanders reached the agreement Monday in their first meeting since the June 15 confrontation, the countries said.
The confrontation in the Galwan Valley, part of the disputed Ladakh region along the Himalayan frontier, was the deadliest between the two countries in 45 years.
Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said “the two sides had a frank and in-depth exchange of views on the prominent issues in the current border control and agreed to take necessary measures to cool down the situation.”
The Indian army said in a statement that “commander-level talks … were held at Moldo in [a] cordial, positive and constructive atmosphere. There was mutual consensus to disengage.”
Zhao denied apparent speculation by an Indian government minister that 40 Chinese troops had died in the June 15 clash.
“I can tell you responsibly that it is false information,” he said at a daily briefing.
India has said that 20 of its soldiers died. China has not released any information on casualties on its side.
Soldiers brawled with clubs, rocks and their fists in the thin air at 14,000 feet above sea level, but no shots were fired, Indian officials have said. The soldiers carry firearms but are not allowed to use them under a previous agreement in the border dispute.
Indian security officials have said the fatalities were caused by severe injuries and exposure to subfreezing temperatures.
The valley falls within a remote stretch of the 2,100-mile Line of Actual Control — the border established following a war between India and China in 1962 that resulted in an uneasy truce.
Russia will not be stepping in to mediate between China and India following a deadly border clash in the Himalayas, the country’s foreign minister said Tuesday.
Sergey Lavrov said after a video call with his Chinese and Indian counterparts that Beijing and New Delhi don’t need outside assistance to settle their differences.
“We never had a goal to help India and China develop their bilateral ties,” Lavrov said in a call with reporters. “India and China have every opportunity to tackle and solve any problems in relations between them.”
Moscow has maintained close ties with both Beijing and New Delhi.
The negotiations come as India is pushing Russia to speed up the delivery of a missile defense system as ties with China deteriorate.
In a scheduled meeting between Defense Minister Rajnath Singh and his Russian counterpart in Moscow, Singh plans to seek the advanced delivery of the Russian S-400 antiaircraft missile defense system — currently due in December 2021 — and the purchase of Russian-made jet fighters Su-30Mki and MiG-29, people familiar with the details said. India and Russia signed the S-400 deal worth more than $5 billion in 2018.
The missile system will provide heft to the country’s otherwise antiquated air defenses, while the additional fighters will boost the capability of the Indian Air Force. It needs 10 more squadrons of fighters to supplement the 32 currently in operation, said the people, who asked not to be named citing rules on speaking to the media. A squadron has between 16 and 18 warplanes.
Defense Ministry spokesman A Bharat Bhushan Babu declined to comment before the meetings in Moscow had taken place.
The U.S. has cautioned India against buying the S-400 system, saying the purchase would have a serious impact on Washington-New Delhi defense ties.